Road grader



Feb.7 21, 1928. 1,660,050

A. G. RONNING ET AL ROAD GRADER Filed July 18. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 u ll Feb. 21, 1928.

A. G. RONNING ET AL ROAD GRADER Filed July 1s. 1924 4 Sheeas-Sheei'l 2Feb. 21, 192s. 1,660,050

A. G. RONNING ET AL ROAD GRADER "Filed July 18. 1924 4 sheets-sheet 5 PZE #C ATTORNEY Feb. 21, 1928. 1,660,050

A. G. RONNING ET AL ROAD G RADER l Filed July 18. 1924 4 sheets-sheet 4v*mz3-137 Vzw om 1.90 o zal U 19o IN u l o a 6? 4 15a A d 1': l les 88 gl zw L:o o l? l86 o o O 0\@ Jaa -IQ 1E| W97 .91 rje, 1Km? IMA?!l 187 lgll- ATTORNEY Famed Feb. 21, 1928.

UNITED STATES l 1,660,050 PATENT oF1-1c1-:.

ANDREAN G. RoNNING AND Anonrn n oNNING, or MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA..

Roan GRADEN.

applic-timaY med July 1s,

This invention relates to grading machines and the primary object is toprovide a grader' and a frame mounting therefor which renders itparticularly adaptable for use in con- `nection with tractors of thewell known object is to provide a container for surfacing material andmeans-for distributing or spreading such material either in advance or.rearwardly of the grader implement. These and a number of other objectsare affected by the novel, ingenious and practical construction andarrangement of parts which will now be described and claimed, and whichare all clearly and distinctly illustrated in the accompanying drawings,which form a partofthis specification, and' in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a complete l machine embodyingthefprinciples of our in# vention, a portion of the container beingbroken away and some parts being omitted. Fig. 2 is a rear view ofthemachine as shown in Fig. 1.v

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the front end 'of the machine.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation similar to Fig. 1, but showing certainmodifications thereover.

Fig. 5 is aV top or plan view of the ma- `chine as shown 1n Fig. 4.

Fig. 6. is a side elevation of a preferred construction, showing"certain further modications inthe machine, and with end portions thereofbroken away. 4

Fig. 7 isv al rear view of the machine shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail sectional view as on the line 8.-8 in Fig.5.

Fig. l9 is' an' enlarged fractional detail view of a certain -drivingconnection which will later be described in detail.

Fig. 10 is an 'enlarged detail section on the line. 10-10'in Fig. 6.

Fig. 11 `is a plan View .0f the grader de- 1924. Serial N0. 726,662.

vices proper, as seen about as on the line 11-11 in Fig. 6.

Fig. 12 is an enlarged detail plan view, showing the shaft 163 (with acentral portion broken out), and the drive connections at its oppositeends, as seen when looking down upon these parts as shown in Figs. 6 and7.

Referring to the drawings more particularly and by reference charactersA designatesV a tractor unit of the F ordson type, to

which is secured and from which rearwardly extends an auxiliary frame B,a yokeC at the front end of the machine being substituted for the normalfore carriage or steering truck D of the tractor, so as to support the.front end of the tractor when the .fore carnage has been removed. Theconstruction of the frame B, its application to-thef -tractor A, andthemethod of operating the new machine which is thus formed, is,illustrated and described in our co-pending ap- .plication Serial No.717,511, which was filed on June 3rd,. 1924. In thatv case the`structure illustrated isconfined to one in which the front truck D ofthe tractor is removed and applied to the rear end of the auxiliaryframe. This we have.y also shown in the present case, as in Figs. 6 and7, but in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, the normal steering truck of the tractor isnot utilized for any purpose, and the rear end of the frame B issupported by a. roller carriage E, which is more suited to a roadworking machine under certain 4circumstances. v

The construction and steering operation of the truck D, as shown inFigs. 6 'and 7, may be .briefly described as follows: The truck orcarriage D consists of an axle 141 to the ends of which are secured, bythecustomary spindle membersD1, the steering wheels D2, which4are-simultaneously angled lor turned by a connecting rod which 1s nothere shown, but is shown as at 21' in our crank D6 (Fig. 6), or onesimilar to it, controlled by the hand wheel 33. When the truck D is usedin the new arrangement, however, the -rod D* 1s extended forwardly,

and is actuated by the ciank D6 -througli the medium of an extensioni'od D7, which is slidably secured to the franie B by brackets D8, and aconnecting rod D9. The character D10 designates theusual'radius rod ofthe axle 141 and connects the axle with a frame member D11. As the axleis pivoted, as at D12, to the depending bolster D13 of the around-anidler pulley 31, and is then woundl frame, it will be seen that it maytilt, in the usual manner in a transverse plane, with respect to themachine, but will be held against rotation in a horizontal plane. Itwill also be noted that it is also a simple matter to steerl the wheelsD2 by connecting them up with the normal steering apparatus of thetractor, with theaid of the mechanism we have just described.

Referring (now to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the numeral designatesa yoke or frame in the arms of which are journaled the ends of a shaft16, which carries a drum or roller 17; The yoke 15 is pivotally secured,for transverse tilting movement, by a pivot 18, -to a casting 19, whichis journaled to rotate on a vertical center from the frame B, and whichis provided with a worm gear 20 adapted to be actuated or. rotated by aworin 21, on a shaft 22. This shaft 22 l1 as aJ bevel pinion 23,whichmeshes with a similar pinion 24l on a vvertical shaft 25, which, with ahandv wheel 26, forms the steering column. This steering column isarranged adjacent to a seat or support 27, near the rear end of theframe, so that the operator at this point may steer and control themachine and all its parts.

It may here be stated that the machines shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 5'are provided with dual controls so that the entire machine may becontrolled either from the tractor seat 28 or by an operator sittingfinthe rear seat 27. In the manually steered device shown in Figs. 1 and 2,the steering can also be affected from the front or tractor -seat bymeans of a cable 29 which is Wound around a sheave 30 on thev shaft 25,passes around a spool 32 which is rotated by the normal tractor steeringhand wheel 33.

In the manually controlled buit power steered device shown in Figs. 4, 5and 8 the worm ring gear 20 is rotated by a worm 34 o na shaft 35, whichis provided with a fi'ictioXwheel 36 adapted to frictionally engagea'disc/ 37 or a disc 38, depending upon the direction of rotationdesired. The positionl of i,the wheel 36 is determined by a bell crankyoke 39 which is controlled either from the i front'steering column 40,by "a rod 41, or

:from the rear steering column 42 by a rod 43. The two'discs 37, 38 aresecured on a shaft 44 which is continuously rotated by thejpower shaft45 of the engine through 'the 'medium of bevel pinions 46, shaft 47 aworm 48 and a Worm gear 49.

carriesv a smallfrictional wheel 50, which is slidably keyed to it, andwhich continuously engages a disc 51 on an inclined shaft 52, thefrictional resistance between the two wheels being adjustable by a locknut device 53. The wheel is movable to or* to either side of the deadcentervof the disc 51, by a forked member 54, controlled by Aa hand levei 55,5through a :rodV 56. The shaft 52, by means of bevel pinions 57,rotates a shaft 58, of an endless carrier 59, the upper run of which isarranged to move in either direction over the floor of a container 61.Thus material within the container may bev motive power, so that it maybe delivered -either forwardly or rearwardly of the grader, as may bedesired, and as hausalready been set forth in the above mentionedapplication Ser. No. 717,511.

'The driving connection between the power shaft 45 ofthe engine and thecarrier 59, asshowii in Figs. 1 and 2 is s omewhat simpliied, andconsists of a pair of pinion driven shafts 62 and 63, thelatter of whichhas a friction roller 64 which is adjustably engageable with a disc 65,on the. shaft 58, by a fork 66 'on a rod 67. lThis rod 67 is slidable inbearings 68. At its front end it connects with a. hand lever 69, so thatit can be regulated from the'front. seat 28, and it may also beregulated from the rear seat 27, by a lever 70, through a shaft 71 andan operating 'finger 72.

The usual clutch lever 73 and the gear shifting lever 74 of the tractormay also be controlled from the rear seat 27 by extension devices whichare shown in Fig. 1, and will now be described. Thel c -lutch lever 73,which is pivoted as at 75 is d epressed by the foot of the operator(sitting inthe seat 28) before the-speed lever 74 may be shifted. It isconnected by a cable 76 to the arm /77 of the shaft having a foot pedal79 so that -when the pedal 7 S) is depressed by an operator in the seat27 it will release the clutch the same as when the front lever 73 ispressed down. The lever 74 is also controlled from the rear seat by aslidably journal'ed shaft 80 having a handlever 81` at its rear end forturning and slidingthe shaft. The front ond of the shaft vhas a ingepiI82 which universally engages a bracket 83', secured on the lever` 74;sothat by operating 'the hand lever 8l the lever'74 may be shiftedeither transversely or forth'f/and back, to affect, the de- A i A curedunder the frame 84, 87, and rotatably adjustable with res ect thereto,is a circular supporting mem er 88, known as a cir-- cle, and under itissecured, bybrackets 89 and braces 90, the scraper blade'91a The ends ofthe beam 87 are suspended by link hooks 92, 93 from 'the arms 94, 95 atthe rear ends of shafts 96, 97, respectively. The front ends of theshafts 96, 97 are provided `with worm pinions 98 which mesh with worms99, which in turn are, actuated by hand wheels 100. Thus either or bothends of the .beam 87 maybe manually raised and lowered,'as desired, byactuating the hand`- wheels 100. l

In the machine shown in Figs. 4, and

8 the scraper frame is provided with a lifting or adjusting mechanism,which although .manually controlled (from either seat 27 or 28) is'poweroperated ,by the engine, as

follows :l The endsof the beam 87 are connected by links 101 and 102 tocranks 103 and 104' on respective shafts 105 .and 106. The shaft106'hasa worm gear 107, meshing with a worm 108 on a shaft 109. Thelower end of the Ashaft 109 has a friction roller 110 which is arran ed`'between to engage either of the discs 3 or 38. The roller is movedinto engagement with either of the discs, as desired, by a bell crankmember 111 which, in turn, is actuated by a link 112 and an arm 113 of asleeve 114 which is journaled to the frame B. This sleeve is alsoprovided with arms 115 and 116, the first of which is connected by a rod117 to a rear (left). foot pedal 118, while the latter is 'connected bya rod 119 to a front (left) foot pedal 120.

Rotatably secured in the sleeve'114 and also journaled to the frame B,as at 121, is

a sha-ft 122 having three crank arms 123,

124 and .125. vThe crank arm 123 is con- 4 nected by a link rod 126 to-a front (right) foot pedal 127, thearm 125 is connected by a link rod128 to a rear (right) foot pedal 129, and the arm 124 is connected by alink 130 to a bell crank levery131, which controls the 4position of afriction roller' 132, of a shaft 133, with respect to its engagementwith either of the two friction discs 134 and 135l on the Ycontinuouslyrotated shaft 44. The upper end of theshaft 133 drives a worm gear 136on the shaft 105, to raise and lower the right end of the beam` 87, asmay be required.l It will thus bel obvious that the operation of themechanism for controlling` the vertical position of the right end of thescraperl beam 87, by the action of either pedal 127 or 129, will besubstantiall the same as the raising and lowering of t e left end of thebeam bythe pedal 12o or 118. L

l The entire scraper fra-me may also be raised and lowered withoutchanging the Working-angle of the blade 91 by Clutch hand levers 137 and138, -which, by means of .by the scraper orother road working implement.Thus the angle of the scraper blade will be automatically adjustedtocorrespond to the angle or inclinationof the axle 141, and as the truckyor carriage vD d oes not roll 'over bumps or hollows in the roadsurface,

as do the traction wheels, its axle will have `a substantially uniformanglel at all times. This mechanism also co-op'erates with but does notin any way interfere with the manual adjusting mechanism for tilting theblade. as may be desired under various cir- Cumstances. The mechanismreferred to consists of 'a pair of shafts 142 and 143 having respectivecranks 144 and 145 at their rear ends'and keyed worm gears 146 and 147at their front ends. The cranks 144 and 145 are connected by links 148and 149 to the axle 141. Trunnioned upon-the shafts 142, 143,'andretained between the gears 146, 147 and bearing members 150,'are a pairof bell crank levers having substantially horizontal arms 151 and 152,connected by links or link hooks 153 and 154 to the Vends of the beam87. The upstauding or normally vertical ,arms 155 and 156 of these bellcrank levers are bifurcated, as shown, and

in themarejournaled shafts 157 and 158, having worms 159 and 160 whichmesh with the gea-rs 146 and 147. Bevel pinions 161 or actuated bysuitable hand wheels 166 and 167, through the medium of bevel pinions1634..f It may herebe noted that the front end' of the shaft 163(andzalso 174) is journaled and supported in a bearing eX- tension 163Bof a bracket 163C, and that the rear part of the shaft is journaled andsupported in a bearing extension 155A of the member 155. j f

In the operati/on of the mechanism immediately above described, it willbe seen-that ywhen the right end (for'instance) of the axle 141 movesupwardly .it will raise' the crank 144 and cause all lthe parts 146,159, 155, 155A, 157, 161 163 and 1.51 to rotate 0n the respective clutchlocks 139 and 140, lock the A I i raise or lowerJthe entire blade or toincrease or decrease its inclination, that result may be affected byoperating either one or both of the hand wheels 166 or 167.' Thus, forinstance, if the wheel 166 is rotated, it will correspondingly opera-tethrough' the shaft 163 and pinions 161 to rotate the worm 159 and causeit to crawl or move on the rigid gear 146, thus'causing the yoke arms-155 and 151 to turn on the shaft 1 142 and raise the link 153 of thescraper frame bar 87. Asl the shaft 163 is provided withfsuitableuniversal joints 165it will not interfere or bind when the worm 159, andits bearings, move in an arc over the worm gear 146.

The scraper or surfacing mechanism proper, as shown in Figs. 6. 7,v1()and `11, embodies certain additional features and modifications overthat previously described, and will now be set. forth in detail.

The members 84, 87,88, 89, 90 and 91 have been previously mentioned, butinstead of the casting 85 there is now substituted a4 casting 168, whichis pivotally connected by a yoke 169 to the tractor A, and this yoke hasa screw 170, regulated by a hand wheel 171. whereby the front ends ofthe draw bars 84 may be adjusted vertically, as may be desired.

The lower portion of the casting 168 is provided with two sets ofperforat-lons 172 and 173,` which adjustably accommodate the pins 174and 175 of a yoke 17 6'and a frame 177 lof a scarifier. 'The yoke 176 isrigidly secured to a hollow shaft or pipe 178, by bolts 179, and theshaft in turn is journaled in'the frame 177, so that the line of draftand the rotated position of the shaft 178 may be readily adjusted byreplacing the pins 174, 175 to the perforations 172, 173, as may berequired by the nature of the work to be done. The scarifier teeth' orimplemerits 180 are secured to the pipe 178 by bolts 181, andthe'vertical adjustment of the scarifier aswell 4as its horizontalstability is affected by a pair of adjustable bolts 182, secured attheir upper ends to the frame bars 84. The teeth 180 consist of wedgeshaped castings having renewable triangular edged plates 180a secured totheir bottom faces so that the hard surface of the road may be readilyplowed up and disintegrated.

A bar 183 is mounted in the vertical i flanges of the draw bars 84 andto it are pivotally connected the front ends of a pair of substantiallyL-shaped auxiliary draft beams 184, to the'lowe'r ends of which isadjust-ably secured a smoothing board 185. Rearwardlyof the board 185 isa heavy roller 186, which is connected to the beams 184 by suitablemeans such as links 187; The members `184185 are yieldingly presseddownwardly by springs 188, which are mounted on bolts 189 of the beamsand spread the lower ends of the bolts ownwardly away 'from rearwardlyextending brackets 190, secured on the transverse beam 87. J f

The main structure and the various modiications as above shown anddescribed illustrate some of the lpractical embodiments of ourinvention. It is understood, however, that further modifications in thegeneral design and structural-details may be resorted to, provided thesame are within the scope of the appended claims. Having now illus-'it-ratedv and described certain preferred embodiments of the invention,whatwe claim 1s:

1. The combination with a normal trac-l tor having its forecarriageremoved, of an auxiliary frame extending forwardly to the front end ofthe tractor so as to support it, said frame having its rear end extendedrearwardly of the tractor, a steering truck at' therear end of theframe, and a road working implement adjustably suspended under the rearportion of the frame and arranged to be drawn by the tractor.

2. The combination with av normal tractor having a main frame, tractionwheels and a power member, and having its usual fore carriage removed;of an auxiliary frame extending rearwardly from the tractor and securedto its main frame so as to support it in an operative position when saidfore carriage is removed, a steering carriage supporting the rear end ofsaid auxiliary' frame means for steeringv the carriage, and an earthworking implement adjustably suspended under the auxiliary frame. X 3.The combination with a normal tractor having rear traction wheels andhaving its forecarriage removed, of a frame rigidly secured to andextending rearwardly from the unit so as toy support its front end fromwhence said forecarriage has been removed, means for supporting the rearend of the. frame, an implement arrangedto be drawnbyI the tractionunit, and means for adjustably connecting the implement to the frame.

4. The combination with a tractor unit having a main frame and reardrive wheels and having a drivers support, of a second frame secured toand extending rearwardly from the traction unit, anPimplement suspendedfrom and under the frame, and means, operable from the drivers support,for adjusting the implement with respect to the fram los 5. Thecombination with a vehicle having `front and rear supporting wheels, ofa transversely tiltable axle connecting the rear wheels, a transverselytiltable implement arranged forwardly of the rear wheels, andy 6. Thecombination'witha vehicle having front and rear supporting wheels, of atransversely tiltable axle connecting the rear Wheels, a transverseltiltable implement arranged forwardly o the rear wheels, meansconnecting the said axle with the implement whereby 'a tilting movementof the former will correspondingly tilt the latter, and manuallycontrolled means for tilting the implement independently of the firstmentioned means. f

7. A machine of the character described consisting of a frame, tractionmeans at the forward end of the frame, -a carriage tiltably connected toand supporting the rear end of the frame, an implement arranged underthe frame, and connected to the traction means, and means associatedwith the ca'rriage for controlling the transverse angular -position ofthe implement.

8. The combination with a tiltable road working implement supported by aframe and adapted to be drawn therewith over the road, of a carriagearranged rearwardly of the implement and tiltably connected tothe frame,and means associated with the carriage for tilting the implement;

9. The combmation with a tiltable road working implement supported by a.vehicle frameand adapted to be drawn therewith over a road, of acarriage arranged .rear- Vwardly ofthe implement and tiltably supportingthe. frame, means mounted on the frame and associated withv the carriagefor automatically and correspondingly tilting the implement with respectto the carriage, and means for manually controlling thetiltable\position of the implement irrespective of the position of thecarriage.

10. The combination with a road machine or the like having atransversely tiltable earth workin blade, of means associated with thebla e, and, engageable with' the earth surface traversed by the blade,to automatically retain the blade in a parallel position with respect tothe earth surface 'thus traversed, as the entire machine moves forward,said means including a carriage tiltably supporting the rear end of themachine.

11. The combination of a transversely tiltable earth engaging memberadapted to be p drawn over the ground by a tractor unit arranged-inadvance thereof, means associated -with the member and engageable withthe ground surface rearwardly of the member,

, to constantly retain a predetermined pitch orvtransverse inclinationof the member as it travels over the ground, and manually controlledmeans operable from the tractor unit for adjusting said predeterminedpitch. 12. The combination in a machine of the character described,l ofa frame, .traction means at the front end of the frame, steering meansat the rear end of the frame and including a transverse tiltable axle,an implcment adjustably suspended under the frame and adapted to bedrawn therewith by the tract-ion means, and an implement adjustingmechanism connected with the said axle of the steering means.

13. The combination with-a 'vehicle having a frame, of a carriagetiltably secured to and supporting the rear end of the frame, a forecarriage rigidly secured to the front end ofthe frame, an implementadjustably secured under the frame, and an adjusting mechanismcontrolled by therst mentioned carriage for adjusting the implement.

v14. The combination in a machine of the' character described, of atraction unit, a frame extending rearwardly therefrom and secured inrigid alignment therewith, a steering carriage supportingthe rear end ofthe frame and adapted to be controlled from the traction unit, animplement adjustably suspended under the frame to be drawn therewith bythe traction unit, and an adjusting mechanism controlled fromv thetraction unit foradjusting the implement.

ing carriage to the tractor whereby the operator of the tractor maysteer said carriage.

16. The combination with a tractor having traction wheels supporting itsrear endv tending rearwardly therefrom so as to sup-V 'f port andcounterbalance the front end of the tractor,xsteerin0v means forsupporting the rear end of the. adjustably arranged under the frame andarran ed to be drawn by the tractor.

1%. The combination with a tractor having traction wheels supportlng.its rear end, an auxiliary frame secured longitudinally of the tractorand extending rearwardly therefrom so as to support and counterbalancethe front end of the tractor, steering means for supporting the rear endof the frame, a working unit arranged rearwardly of the tractor andconnected with the draw bar ame, and an implement thereof, and means forvertically adjusting either side of the working unit with respectl tothe frame.

18. A machine of the character described consisting in combination, of atractor havinga main frame and supported atits rear on traction wheels,a second frame extending .rearwardly from the tractor and having awheeled support at its rear end, means for supporting the front end ofthe tractor from the second frame, an earth working implement drawn bythe tractor and adjustably associated with the second frame, and meansfor steering the machine.

19. The combination with a normal tractor `having rear traction wheelsand having its normal steering carriage removed, of a frame secured tothe tractor so as to support its front end from'whence the steeringcarriage has been removed, a steering carriage supporting the rear endof the frame, an implement adjustably associated with. the frame andadapted to be drawn therewith by the tractor, and means for operativelyconnecting the normal steering mechanism of y the tractor with saidsteering carriage.

earth working implement, and steering theV machine. l

21. The' combination inv a self-propelled` road machine, of a tractionunit having laterally spaced traction wheels, a frame extendingrearwardly from the `traction unit and having its front endcarried.thereby,

. supporting means for the rear yend of the frame, said supporting meansbeing transversely -tiltable with respect to the traction wheels, agrader blade arranged under the frame to be drawnv therewith andassociated with the supporting means so as to be translversely tiltabletherewith and with respect to the traction wheels, means for steeringthe machine, and means for manually adjusting the transverse inclinationof the grader 22. In. a self propelled road machine, a frame, a tractionunit supporting the front end of the frame, a carriage for supportingthe rear end of the frame, said carriage being transversely tiltablewith respect to the traction unit, a second frame arranged below themain frame and rearwardly of the traction unit, a transversely arrangedcutting 1 blade carried by the second frame, a drivers support on themachine, and controls extending tothe drivers support for steering theymachine and for adjusting the transverse inclination of the cuttingvblade.

23. In a 'self-propelled road machine, 'a frame, a traction unitsupporting the front end 'of the'frame, a carriage for supporting therear end of the frame, said carriage being transversely tiltable withrespect to the i traction unit, a second frame'arranged below the mainframe and rearwardly of the traction unit, a cuttingv blade adjustablycarried by the second frame, and means for vertically adjusting eitheror both ends of the cutting blade. y

24. In a self-propelled road machine, the combination including a mainframe, a traction unit supporting the front end of the `frame, asteering carriage comprising a pair of laterally spaced wheels forsupporting the r'an ed below the main frame and rearwardly o thetraction unit, said cutting blade being associated with the steeringcarriage so as to be transversely tiltable therewith with respect to thetraction unit. v .25. In-a self-propelled road machine, the

combination including a main frame, a trac-` tion unit supporting thefront endof the frame, a carriage for supporting the rear end of theframe and being transversely tiltable with respect to the tractionunit,a second frame suspended underthe main frame andI rearwardly of thetraction unit so as to be drawn thereby, a cutting blade carried by thesecond frame, and means for manually adjusting the transverseinclination of the cutting blade.

26. In a self-propelled road machine, a traction unit, av frameextending rearwardly from the`traction unit and havin its front endcarried thereby, a cutting lade suspended transversely below the frameand ,rearwardly of the traction unit so as to be drawn together withthe' frame thereby, a

8.5 vrear -end of the frame, a cutting blade arcarriage for supportingthe rear end ofthe l frame and adapted to travel on the earth Asurfacetraversed by the cutting blade, and

means controlled by the carriage to automatically retain the cuttingedge of they blade in a parallel position with respect to the earthsurface thus traversed.

27. In a self-propelled road machine, a

traction unit, a :frame extending rearwardly from the traction unit andhaving its front end carried thereby, a cutting lade suspendedtransversely below the frame and rearwardly of the traction unit so asto be drawn thereby, a carriage for supporting the rear end of, theframe and adapted-to travel on the earth surface traversed by thecutting blade, means controlled bythe carwriage to automatically retainthe cutting edge of the blade in a parallel osition with respect totheearth traversed yy the blade,

and means for manually adjusting the tra-nsverse inclination of theblade.`

28. In a self-propelled road machine, the combination includingfatraction unit'having a power element carried thereon and laterallyspaced traction members driven thereby by the power element, a frameegitending rearwardly of the tractionunit and having its fore endcarried thereby, a carriage supporting the rea-r end of the frame, saidcarriage being transversely tiltable with respect to the traction unit,a second frame suspended below the rst mentioned frame,

` tures.

'and adapted to be drawn therewith behind station on the machine,controls/extending to said station for adjusting the inclination of thecutting edge of the grader blade, and means for steering the machine.

In testimony whereof we affix our signa- I ANDREN G. RONNING. ADOLPHRONNING.

